BLACKPINK in your area ❤

I’ve been quiet the last few weeks because of some personal issues and also the general trying times of being a third year medical student. But I’m finally back because some of my faves are also coming back. Thank you universe.

BLACKPINK’s Kill This Love!

If you haven’t heard of BLACKPINK before, then you must have been living under a rock. BLACKPINK is a South Korean girl group who has been making waves across Asia and the world since they debuted in 2016 with one of forever favorite hype tracks, Boombayah.

They’ve always appealed to me thanks to their stunning visuals and really charismatic raps. They have a very short discography compared to other K-Pop acts, but almost every single one is a bop and I understand Teddy from YG is to thank for that. Mostly.

So anyway. Last Friday they debuted a new song,Kill This Love, and it’s been breaking so many records. The girls are set to do a press tour in USA soon, and they’re even performing in Coachella!

If you haven’t heard this bop yet, please do so:

CAN YOU SEE THIS? We mortals don’t deserve them!

I consider myself a Blink (which is a really cute fandom name by the way), but I don’t think I’m a full stan yet. I love their songs, M/Vs and I watch the occasional fancam, but I’m more of a casual retweeter and Instagram-liker more than anything. I promise I’ll watch their reality show when I have the time.

And yet… they’re so outrageously charismatic and high quality that I shelled out like $280 of my own money for VIP tickets in their Manila concert. I regret nothing, but I’ll probably never do that again. My neck aches just thinking about it (not to mention my bank account).

From the moment I saw them during soundcheck, even when they where just wearing casual sweatpants, I already thought they were four of the most inhumanly gorgeous people I’ve ever seen in my life. I’m so so proud of them, and I’m so happy they get to have incredible moments like these.

My bias is Rosé and my bias wrecker is probably Lisa. Though to be honest I can cycle through all of them.

For the concert itself, I had so much fun. There was a lot of lining up involved (like the two-hour concert actually took over maybe 10 hours of my life). The soundcheck was definitely worth the extra cost, but I definitely think that there should be a package to get Upper Box + Soundcheck instead. I don’t think I’ll ever want to go VIP again because fighting for a good view in the standing VIP area is just really exhausting. Please get on that, concert organizers. I would even pay more for that kind of package.

A lot of the fun had to do with the people I was with, both physically and spiritually (?). The concert was really also part of my younger cousin’s birthday celebration, so I had fun with the fam. Some of my med school friends were also there in the audience.

Before I end this, I just want to say that I love Ddu-Du Ddu-Du so much that I even learned the choreo of the chorus. I also cannot believe that its music video, released just last June 2018, is already at 748 million views and counting. That is power.

BTS’ Map of the Soul: Persona

My other favorite group is coming back soon this Friday! It’s like a back-to-back weekend of great content for poor fans like me.

If you haven’t heard of BTS by now, you’re not just living under a rock. You must be living under a rock floating in another galaxy. I’m not here to list their achievements (which have been many) or their hit songs (also many). I’m just here… to express excitement…

Ever since I watched their Wings concert in Manila (I blogged about it briefly here), I think my appreciation for K-Pop really went to the next level. I consumed a lot of BTS content, including random reality episodes and behind the scenes. Believing in what I know of their personalities, I’m really happy to be a fan (the fandom is called ARMY by the way).

This is their ‘comeback trailer’ for their next album. The comeback trailer is basically the first album track, performed solo. In this case, it’s by RM (a bias wrecker):

I love how their message really transcends the language barrier. Without the English subtitles, you can already tell that this fast rap track is talking about different identities and confronting internal and external conflicts. The subtitles and commentaries available online just add more depth to this very personal yet socially reflective track. It’s very good songwriting and production.

My bias is still Jimin but I honestly wish them all the best always.

Catch them on Saturday Night Live (yes, that SNL) for their comeback stage!

(G)-IDLE’s Senorita

Senorita came out last February, but I still want to add this to my blog post, mainly because I really love this girl group.

(G)-IDLE is one of the remaining saving graces of Cube Entertainment. They’re a six-member girl group with well-produced self-written title tracks. I think their involvement in the writing process as well as their charisma on stage really drew me in.

They debuted in May 2018 with Latata,with Soyeon hooking you in right at the start. They haven’t even had their first anniversary yet, but they’re already performing unforgettable stages. Most people have heard of them from this viral League of Legends music video (POP/STARS by K/DA).

I finally became a fan (officially Neverland) when I saw their performance in Melon Music Awards 2018. They were honestly the best girl group performers that night (and I’m pretty sure BLACKPINK also had a stage). For rookies, they just have incredible presence and potential.

It took me awhile to like their new song Senorita. They’re really branching out into different sounds. I think there were a few production choices that I didn’t understand or appreciate initially, but after some time I really couldn’t stop singing it.

Anyway I think I’ve written about K-Pop long enough. I actually have an exam tomorrow but my body and mind just don’t want to divert energy into more productive things. But in the end I’m thankful that I finally breathed life into this blog again thanks to my lords and saviours in the world of K-Pop.

Over next week’s break, I hope to FINALLY write about all the other things that have happened since my last life update. I’ve competed in a clinicopathological conference (for the first and last time, probably), went to the latest Art Fair PH, read a great book about math, and done a host of other things.

Honestly, time is passing by way too quickly. But if that means more comebacks… :)